Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Comparative Study
. 2011 Winter;21(1):85-90.

Subsidized housing not subsidized health: health status and fatigue among elders in public housing and other community settings

Pamela L Parsons  1 , Briana Mezuk, Scott Ratliff, Kate L Lapane
Affiliations
Comparative Study

Subsidized housing not subsidized health: health status and fatigue among elders in public housing and other community settings

Pamela L Parsons et al. Ethn Dis. 2011 Winter.

Abstract

Objectives: To estimate trends in the prevalence of fatigue among elders living in public housing or in the community; to compare health status of elders living in public housing to their community-dwelling counterparts.

Design: Cross-sectional study.

Setting: Community-dwelling elders who reported ever residing in public housing were compared to those living in other community settings.

Participants: Participants of the Health and Retirement Study (seven waves of interviews conducted from 1995 through 2006) interviewed in 2006 with complete data on housing status, self-report measures of health status and measures of functioning (n = 16,191).

Measurements: Self-reported fatigue, functioning, and other health conditions. We also evaluated four functional indices: overall mobility, large muscle functioning, gross motor functioning, and fine motor functioning.

Results: Those reporting having lived in public housing were twice as likely to rate their health as fair or poor relative to those with no public housing experience (57.3% vs 26.9%, respectively). Cardiac conditions, stroke, hypertension, diabetes, arthritis and psychiatric problems were all more prevalent in those living in public housing relative to community-dwelling elders not living in public housing. Fatigue was more prevalent in persons residing in public housing (26.7%) as compared to other community-dwelling elders (17.8%).

Conclusion: The health status of persons residing in public housing is poor. Fatigue and comorbid conditions are highly prevalent and more common in those living in public housing. Developing care models that meet the needs of this oft-neglected population is warranted.

PubMed Disclaimer

Figures

Fig 1
Fig 1
Prevalence of fatigue stratified by history of public housing
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Wilden R, Redfoot D. Adding Assisted Living Services to Subsidized Housing: Serving Frail Older Persons with Low Income. Washington, DC: AARP Public Policy Institute; 2002.
    1. Haley BA, Gray RW. U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development Office of Policy Development and Research Section 202 Supportive Housing for the Elderly: Program Status and Performance Measurement. 2008
    1. Roman C, Knight C, Chalfin A, et al. The relation of the perceived environment to fear, physical activity, and health in public housing developments: evidence from Chicago. J Public Health Policy. 2009;30:S286–S308. - PubMed
    1. Stewart TS, Woodard RM, Rosen AB, et al. The impact of symptoms and impairment on overall health in US national health data. Med Care. 2008;469:954–962. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Walke L, Gallo W, Tinnetti M, et al. The burden of symptoms among community-dwelling older persons with advanced chronic disease. Arch Intern Med. 2004;164:2321–2324. - PubMed

Publication types

LinkOut - more resources